Through the Mist
by thumos
Summary: Because Water Tribe Avatars need to stick together too. AU tag to "A Voice in the Night".


People say things when they think she's not listening; Korra knows that as well as everyone else. She doesn't need Lin Beifong to remind her that no one in Republic City takes her seriously, that everyone in the city thinks she's just there killing time until some huge crisis pops up. No, she's heard people on the streets wondering why the Equalists are still such a huge threat, even when the Avatar's in the city. Korra really wishes she could give them an answer, but everything she comes up with just sounds like an excuse.

In a way, Tarrlok's request comes as a blessing in disguise: "I need you talk to the spirit Koh… see if he has any advice on how to deal with our little problem. Should be easy enough for the Avatar, right?" Korra can only vaguely remember Koh from her studies before coming to Republic City – the Face Stealer, a truly formidable spirit… but not necessarily an evil one. Still, Tenzin's apprehension when she tells him of the plan isn't _completely_ unfounded.

It takes Korra almost twenty tries to actually pass into the Spirit World – but no one said spirituality was her strong point. She finds herself in what appears to be some sort of swamp. She can see a monkey meditating under a stone arch, and tiny birds flying everywhere. At first, she wants to laugh and jump with joy because _she finally made it to the Spirit World_, but then someone speaks up from behind. "You shouldn't be here. It's not safe."

Korra yelps in surprise and moves to bend the water around her out of pure reflex… only to find that the water doesn't move at her command. A tall man in a Water Tribe warrior's armor stands behind her, looking amused as she attempts to bend the water again. When she fails yet again, she panics. "It's not working… Why isn't it working? Did Amon show up while I was meditating? No, this can't be happening!" She tugs at her hair, and the man places two hands on her shoulders.

"Calm down," he says slowly. "Bending doesn't work in the Spirit World."

Korra sighs in relief as the man takes off his wolf helmet, shaking his head in the process. His identity comes to her, as if she's always known. "Avatar Kuruk…" she whispers in awe. She shoves aside a rather dark thought – why is Kuruk greeting her here instead of Aang? Instead, she bows respectfully. "It's an honor to meet you."

Kuruk simply chuckles and ruffles her hair a bit. "It's nice to finally see another Water Tribe Avatar," he says good-naturedly. "So which tribe is it?"

"I was born and raised in the Southern Water Tribe, but both my parents are from the North," Korra explains, and then she quickly finds herself losing track of time as she talks to her previous life. It isn't until what feels like hours later that she finally catches onto what he's trying to do. "I need to talk to Koh."

Kuruk's expression grows solemn, and now Korra knows for sure that he was only trying to distract her. "It's too dangerous," he says. "The Spirit World is going through a bit of an imbalance right now, and Koh is more… irritable than usual."

Korra crosses her arms and frowns stubbornly. "I still need to talk to him."

Kuruk sighs heavily and shakes his head. "I can't stop you, can I? Very well." He puts an arm around her shoulder and gestures toward a cave out in the distance. "That is the Face Stealer's lair. Just go in, say only what you need to, and come out. Don't take any detours or talk to anyone else. And, most importantly, when you are talking to Koh, you mustn't show even the slightest expression, or he will take your face and add it to his collection. Koh is not like Tui and La; he will not show mercy, especially not to any perceived weakness, and especially not to the Avatar. Do you understand, Korra?"

"I understand."

Kuruk nods. "Then hurry."

Korra refuses to look at any of the other animals around the cave, already knowing that she won't like what she'll see. She schools her expression into a stoic mask and crosses her arms across her chest almost protectively. "Um… is Koh here?"

A large, centipede-like creature slithers toward her, and an eerie white face grins at her. "Yes?" She purses her lips together, and it suddenly becomes harder to keep her face expressionless. "My, my, what have we here?" One of Koh's appendages strokes her face, making a shiver run down her back. "A pretty little Avatar. Now what is it that you need?"

"I…" Korra mumbles, and she summons the strength to keep her face expressionless. "I need to ask you something."

Koh turns away from her, but she doesn't relax yet. "Ask away, my dear."

"I-In Republic City… that's the city Avatar Aang built… I-It's sort of like a place for people from all the nations… A-Anyway, i-it's sort of… imploding, b-because—"

Her eyebrows shoot upward, and she gives a small shriek when Koh appears in front of her with a Water Tribe woman's face. _No, no, no this is bad, he's going to take my face like that Water Tribe woman's, and why does she look so familiar?_ "You're asking for the spirits to intervene," Koh drawls, and Korra shivers again.

She clears her throat and voids her face of any emotion; Koh may have let this one slide, but he probably won't give her another chance. "Not necessarily." She doesn't know how her voice can come out so strongly. "I just… I just wanted some advice on how to deal with the situation. Everyone I talk to knows how to deal with _benders_ fighting, but what about benders _and_ nonbenders?"

"You must be desperate, to come to me of all spirits… But I'll see what I can do."

Korra's eyes widen slightly, and she lifts her head. "R-Really?" She can't say exactly what it is that tells her that she needs to get out of Koh's lair immediately. Sure enough, the spirit smirks cruelly and speeds toward her… only nothing comes.

Before she can even process what's happening, Kuruk stands before her, his spear pointed at Koh. "I told you," Kuruk said in an agitated voice. "You shouldn't have come here. It was too dangerous! Run! Get out of here! I'll hold him off!"

"B-But…" Korra protests weakly. "What about you?"

"I'll be fine!" Kuruk insists as he swings his spear at the enraged spirit. "Just go!" Korra doesn't know how she can summon the strength to run, but somewhere along the way, the Spirit World and the real world blur together, and the next thing she knows, Tenzin's holding her violently trembling form, and tears are running down her face like torrential rain.

"K-Kuruk… He's…" She's too panicked and frazzled to organize her thoughts into sentences, but she's thankful that Tenzin's there with her and that she's not alone.

"I told Tarrlok this was a horrible idea," she hears the airbender mutter to himself through her sobs.

Minutes, hours, days – she can't even tell which – pass, and, no matter how hard she tries, Korra can't get back into the Spirit World. She knows Tenzin, Pema, and the kids are worried about her, but she's a woman possessed. If it's not "I have to get back into the Spirit World," it's "I have to make sure Kuruk's okay". She still hasn't registered the fact that she failed in her initial task – to extract information from Koh – but she doesn't care about Tarrlok's reaction – not when her predecessor is in danger.

Sometime later, Mako and Bolin finally show up. "Hey Korra," Bolin says in a hesitant, but still cheerful tone.

"I know you're busy with Avatar stuff, but we really need you to come back to training," Mako cuts in.

"Don't say that!" Bolin hisses. Korra can just picture him smacking his brother's arm. "What Mako means is that we're kind of worried about you. I mean… you know, you're like our sister, sort of, and we haven't really seen you or heard from you in weeks, so…"

"Do you mind?" Korra cuts him off a bit rudely. "I'm trying to meditate."

To her surprise, Mako sits down cross-legged next to her, equally stubborn. "Then take a break."

And then everything catches up, and the panic and hysteria boil over. "I can't!" she shrieks, and before she knows it, she's crying again, and she's shaking, and she can't stop, and _she should be meditating and trying to get back into the Spirit World and she's wasting time and Kuruk's still in danger, and_—

Then Bolin puts one arm around her from one side. "It'll be okay," he says, though there's a large part of Korra that insists that he's wrong. "Things will work out."

Mako puts his arm around her from the other side. "What happened?" he asks quietly. And then she tells them everything, which is, regrettably, a lot more than she told Tenzin. And for reasons she can't understand, they listen, neither of them uttering a word until she's done. "That's rough, buddy," Mako says finally, and she can't help but laugh at his awkward gesture.

"Don't say that!" Bolin snaps at him.

"What else are you supposed to say to _that_?" Mako retorts.

"Listen!" Bolin says to Korra. "You're the Avatar, right? So don't you think you'd… you know… _feel_ it if one of your past lives kicked over the waterskin?"

"They're already dead," Mako deadpans.

"Shut up!" Bolin yells. "You know what I mean!"

"No, I get what you're saying," Korra says. Now that the panic's gone, she can finally see the situation rationally. "I haven't really felt any different, but I don't think that means that Kuruk's okay for sure. I have to check."

"Okay then!" Bolin says cheerfully, clapping his hands together. "Now that that's over with, Winter Solstice is coming up! What do you want?"

"I don't know if you did this in the South Pole, but around here, we give presents at the solstices," Mako explains.

And then it hits her. "The Winter Solstice… that's it! That's when I can get back into the Spirit World and see if Kuruk's okay!"

The Winter Solstice comes quickly, and Korra still can't get back into the Spirit World. It isn't until later that night, when she meets up with Mako and Bolin, that she realizes that something is seriously, horribly wrong. Her head feels heavy, and everything feels decidedly… off. Mako and Bolin catch on quickly, demanding that she sit down (Mako) and repeatedly asking her if she's okay (Bolin).

When she shakes her head no, Bolin squeals – whether in surprise or pain, Korra doesn't bother to check. The centipede-like creature that lunges toward him feels sickeningly familiar, and she can only watch as Mako hurls fireballs in its direction. "Leave him alone!" Mako yells. "Korra, can you back me up here?" At first, she silently questions what she did wrong to incite Koh's wrath. Is the Face Stealer still angry about her showing emotion? No, he wasn't angry at the time – his face showed only hunger and lust.

And then, suddenly, it's as if the ground drops out before her feet, but like she's floating at the same time. In a thick haze in front of her, she can see Bolin cowering on the ground, Mako standing protectively in front of his brother, and Koh leering down at both of them… and her own body, lying crumpled on the ground, eyes wide open and glowing white. Then, in a bright light, her body changes, growing taller, her shoulders broadening, her ponytails disappearing as her hair shortens in length.

When the figure opens its mouth, a familiar voice comes out. "Leave them alone, Koh." Korra doesn't know whether to laugh or cry. "You took Ummi to punish me – that's fair enough. But Korra did nothing to deserve this. Leave her friends alone."

Koh smirks cruelly at Kuruk. "Why should I stop when it's such fun?" he asks coldly.

Kuruk flings whips of water larger than Korra had ever seen at Koh, and the Face Stealer cries out in pain. "If you wish to punish me further, do not hold Korra accountable." He freezes Koh in a block of ice and points his spear threateningly at him. "I think it's time we returned to our own world."

In a bright flash of light, Korra's dropped unceremoniously into her body, and the world spins as she collapses to the floor, barely able to keep her eyes open. "Korra!" Mako and Bolin shout simultaneously as the rush to her side, both of them placing a hand on her back to support her as she tries to shake off the dizziness.

"K-Kuruk…" she croaks out, leaning against Mako. "He's okay…"

"Yeah," Mako says, exhaling slowly. "He's okay. You can relax."

"What _was_ that?" Bolin gasps. Mako shakes his head at his brother, jerking his head in Korra's direction, and, as she loses consciousness, she's finally at peace.


End file.
